Back to the AntiGravity Propulsion Intro Page
Puzzle #10
#10. Can we quantitatively understand quark and gluon confinement in quantum chromodynamics and the existence of a mass gap?
Quantum Chromodynamics, or QCD, is the theory describing the strong nuclear force. Carried by gluons, it binds quarks into particles like protons and neutrons. According to the theory, the tiny subparticles are permanently confined. You can't pull a quark or a gluon from a proton because the strong force gets stronger with separation distance, and snaps them right back inside.
But Physicists have yet to prove conclusively that quarks and gluons can never escape. When they try to do so, the calculations go haywire. And, they cannot explain why all particles that feel the strong force must have at least a tiny amount of mass, and why it cannot be zero.
Some hope to find an answer in M theory, maybe one that would also throw more light on the nature of Gravity.
Back to the Physics Puzzles Index Page
Back to the AntiGravity Propulsion Intro Page
